Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) Price Target Raised to $46.00

Key Points

• UBS Group raised its price target for Mosaic (NYSE:MOS) from $45.00 to $46.00, suggesting a potential upside of 43.85% from the current price, while maintaining a "buy" rating.
• Mosaic reported quarterly earnings of $0.51 per share, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71, with revenue of $3.01 billion, below the expected $3.11 billion.
• Institutional investors collectively own 77.54% of Mosaic's stock, with notable increases in holdings from firms such as Invesco Ltd. and Boston Partners in recent quarters.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by analysts at UBS Group from $45.00 to $46.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the basic materials company's stock. UBS Group's price objective indicates a potential upside of 44.79% from the stock's current price.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Mosaic from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen raised Mosaic from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $43.00 price objective (up from $39.00) on shares of Mosaic in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Mosaic from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Mosaic from $29.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $36.50.

Mosaic Stock Performance

MOS stock traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $31.77. The stock had a trading volume of 1,412,883 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,578,979. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.84. Mosaic has a fifty-two week low of $22.36 and a fifty-two week high of $38.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.08 billion, a PE ratio of 10.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by ($0.20). Mosaic had a net margin of 8.35% and a return on equity of 4.74%. The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.54 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Mosaic will post 2.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Mosaic

In other news, SVP Walter F. Precourt III sold 18,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.73, for a total transaction of $643,140.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 128,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,592,948.58. This trade represents a 12.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mosaic

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in Mosaic by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 367,115 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $9,024,000 after acquiring an additional 4,783 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Mosaic during the fourth quarter worth about $2,347,000. Aviva PLC bought a new position in Mosaic in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,417,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Mosaic by 23.6% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,205,005 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $29,618,000 after buying an additional 229,743 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in shares of Mosaic by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 744,124 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $18,291,000 after buying an additional 78,495 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.54% of the company's stock.

Mosaic Company Profile

The Mosaic Company, through its subsidiaries, produces and markets concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients in North America and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Phosphates, Potash, and Mosaic Fertilizantes. It owns and operates mines, which produce concentrated phosphate crop nutrients, such as diammonium phosphate, monoammonium phosphate, and ammoniated phosphate products; and phosphate-based animal feed ingredients primarily under the Biofos and Nexfos brand names, as well as produces a double sulfate of potash magnesia product under K-Mag brand name.